1. Field
The present disclosure relates to computer-generated animation and, more specifically, to rendering an image of a computer-generated scene using a dependency graph.
2. Related Art
A computer-generated animation image can be created by rendering one or more computer-generated objects to depict a scene in the image. Light sources, materials, textures, and other visual effects can be associated with the computer-generated objects to create a realistic visual appearance for the animation image. A dependency graph can be used to define the relationships between assets (which represent the computer-generated objects) and a variety of visual effects as part of the rendering process. The dependency graph typically includes one or more interconnected nodes associating the assets with one or more visual effects, where a node wire can pass the assets and visual effects from node-to-node for processing. The output of the dependency graph can be used to create a rendered image of the scene.
In a typical computer-animation scenario, a computer-generated object is an animated character or object that can be posed or placed in the scene. Multiple visual effects are applied to the character or object to define a lighting configuration for the scene, which gives the character or object a more realistic appearance. In some cases, there are different visual representations that are used depict the character or object. For example, an animated character may change clothing, hair styles, or other visual appearances as dictated by the animator or director. Traditionally, the different visual appearances are treated as separate computer-generated objects and, therefore, the visual effects must be reapplied for every change. This results in redundant lighting setups and may increase the difficulty in maintaining consistent lighting conditions for multiple visual appearances of the animated character.
It is therefore desirable to create a system that applies the same visual effects or lighting conditions to a different visual appearance of the same animated character without the drawbacks mentioned above.